My experience of the second season of Kakegurui was somewhat different from Lena’s overview of the anime in her Winter Season 2019 Final Thoughts post. Like the first season, I was absolutely crazy about it. I find season 1 and 2 both equally entertaining and fun to watch. Though admittedly, the awaited yuri moments were of course a let down. The anime opening is just so very misleading, showing suggestive and flirtatious scenes between various highschool girls. One can only look forward to seeing how relationships within the anime evolved… but there was nothing more than platonic friendships. The opening is a spectacular tease that will leave you wanting more. =(

For those who have never seen it, the story revolves entirely around gambling. The main character, Yumeko, transfers to a gambling school and very quickly becomes one of the top players in the game. There are no grades, teachers, or academics- instead one must survive and move up the ‘academic’ ladder through gambling. Strange concept to be sure, and I am so surprised at how this storyline drew me in so deep that I could watch the whole season in a day. The people at this school are just absolutely crazy and many of them with serious disorders and dangerous personalities. Not to mention anything can be used to gamble- not just money but your freedom and livelihood. That is really what makes this anime so interesting and worth watching- you won’t be able to step away from these twisted minds.

Yumeko is of course the most extreme of them all. She puts everything on the line in order to feel that adrenaline rush from the gamble. The bigger the losses and the greater the risk, the more sexually excited she becomes… that is right, sexually. That is what risk does to her, the animation literally becomes orgasmic. To be honest, I would be very surprised if a relationship was ever to be introduced for her. I personally believe that Yumeko is capable of loving only one thing- gambling. As you get to know her, the more you will realize that a human being couldn’t possibly make her feel as excited as her seriously problematic addiction to risk.

We left off season 1 with Yumeko facing off against the president of the academy, Kirari. Whoever lost would have to leave the academy. Fortunately, the results were a tie and the two were able to continue. This was as intense as it got.

However Season 2 took gambling to a whole new level of crazy. The season started off with a bang with the first episode featuring a gamble that would result in fingers getting chopped off… from poison, death, to jumping off buildings, I found season 2 to be A LOT more intense than the first one. In Season 2 we are introduced to the Momobami Clan, the family directly related to Kirari and distant relatives of Yumeko. The Momobami clan is extremely wealthy, cunning, and thirsty for more power. For an unknown reason, Kirari decides to dissolve the Student Council and open elections to all students, inviting the Momobami Clan to participate. Whoever gains the most votes will become the new president of the academy. Naturally, the stakes are high. The role of president holds an incredible amount of power within the Momobami Clan, not just through wealth, but political influence. This opened a new realm of outrageous gambles in their fight for the position to become president and the leader of the entire Momobami Clan. I don’t know how the writers can think up all these complex games, gambles, and rules- but oh man was it is so well done. I was constantly surprised with every turn of events they threw at me.

Although there is not much yuri, it is still very entertaining. However I can tell you that I was still pretty satisfied with the yuri that actually did come up in the story. It was between two characters that I of course didn’t see coming, and I think nobody else would have either. The anime tends to tease the idea of Yumeko x Kirari or Yumeko x Saotome but as mentioned earlier, by the middle of season 2 you realize that this would just not be possible for Yumeko. Instead, we got to learn more about Kirari, which I very much enjoyed.

The president is a constant mystery throughout the series. The reasons why she does things is never very clear, but she is obviously very smart, talented, and shares a similar but not exact love for adrenaline and risk as Yumeko. I always thought Kirari to be the most interesting of all the characters, she is so hard to figure out and understand that I was really happy and surprised to see her share her true feelings with her secretary, Sayaka. It was quite endearing and actually romantic in the way the two characters are polar opposites and yet so attracted to each other. Hm, maybe I am a sucker because it hits too close to home 😛

The bottom line is- I really recommend it. If you like dark and twisted comedy Kakegurui is a must watch. It is funny, entertaining, and just absolutely… crazy. I look forward to seeing what they come up with in the next season.

Story: 10/10

Yuri: 2/10

Animation: 10/10

Sick and Twisted: 10/10